Reviewer needs to spend $50 to review my book

Topic: Amazon Advantage Program

Question

December 17, 2016

people who buy my books say they try to write a review say they can't unless they join and have spent $50.00. Why?

Jeanne - USA

27572

Answer

I know that in order to submit a review the person needs to get an account with Amazon for purchasing item. But I haven't seen anything about them having to spend $50 on books or goods before they can submit a book review.

Amazon seems to be jacking up the prices and looking at new ways to make money. I know that they recently increased the yearly fee for their Advantage program from $29.95 to $99/yr. That is a steep jump.

Best wishes in selling your books, either on Amazon or through other outlets.

Having problems getting paid from Amazon

Topic: Amazon Advantage Program

Question

November 6, 2015

My name is Annell Ferguson. My husband, Myron Ferguson is the author and publisher of Better Houses, Better Living, which is still listed in Amazon books. The problem is two fold. One we still have unpaid invoices in the total amount of $2,692.55 (I can provide invoice #s if you wish).These invoices date from 2013. As of about May of 2014 my husband became incapacitated and was unable to fulfill orders. About that time Amazon Advantage stopped ordering. We still have 240 books at Publishers Storage and Shipping. Our request is two-fold we would like to continue selling the book which is still listed on Amazon and also to collect the amount of unpaid invoices. With necessary information I will be glad to ship orders to Amazon.Thank you.

Annell - USA

26503

Answer

I'm sorry to hear that you haven't been paid by Amazon Advantage. Do you receive paper checks or electronic transfer to your bank account? Make sure they have the correct account number.

Is Publishers Storage and Shipping a separate company that sends books to Amazon?

Amazon seems to have things screwed up with their Advantage program. They have two different web pages for the program. Check the old version for more information. The new version is simply a login, that will lead you to other pages. Try both.

The big thing is that you want to contact them to find out what is happening.

I hope this helps. Best wishes in getting your money and getting things straightened out.

Confused about Amazon Advantage Program

Question

October 22, 2015

I am so confused. I have my own ISBN number. Amazon is printing my books so I need to ship from amazon to amazon? Why that extra step?

JoAnne - USA

26466

Answer

I assume Amazon is printing your books through their CreateSpace program. In such a case, they will automatically post your book on their website and send payments on sales according to your account preferences.

Usually, if a person has books printed locally, she might get into the Amazon Advantage Program to have the book listed on their site and then sold on consignment. However, that usually isn't cost effective.

Since Amazon is printing your books, forget about their Advantage Program.

I checked Amazon and see that your book is due out in December 2015. It might be a good idea to go through their Kindle Direct Publishing and make a Kindle version of the book. That would increase your sales.

How do I get North American distribution rights?

Topic: Amazon Advantage Program

Question

October 14, 2015

Hi!How do I get "North American distribution rights" for a book that i have produced in Sweden?Regards Susanne

Susanne - Sweden

26438

Answer

If you have copyrighted your book, are the publisher and have not sold the distribution rights, then you can be considered to have North American distribution rights. However, if you have gone through another publisher, such that they own the ISBN and have their imprint on the cover, they most likely own the rights.

Going through the Amazon Advantage consignment program may not be cost-effective for selling books from Sweden, due to the shipping costs. It would be better to go through their CreateSpace program, where they will print-on-demand for orders through Amazon.com. You can still sell your existing books in Sweden.

Suggested publishing resource

Topic: Resources

Question

September 14, 2015

Hi there,

My name is Vanessa and I'm part of the team at Canva. I was doing a bit of research when I stumbled upon this page: www.school-for-champions.com/publishing/resources.htm.I notice links posted about ebooks and was wondering if you have tried Canva? Here's a link: https://www.canva.com/create/book-covers/. We'd love to be included in your post.

Basically, Canva is a simple, drag-and-drop, design software that’s completely online and free to use. It gives you everything you need to easily turn ideas into stunning designs. Create designs for Web or print: blog graphics, presentations, Facebook covers, flyers, posters, invitations and so much more. It's been a very exciting adventure: we’ve been around for just over 21 months and already have 4 million users.

Please let me know if you are interested. Don't hesitate to ask any questions. Thank you for your time!

Best Regards,

Vanessa - USA

26380

Answer

Thanks for the suggested resource. It is a topic I had just been thinking about.

It is profitable going through Amazon Advantage?

Topic: Amazon Advantage Program

Question

August 13, 2015

Hallo!Will it be profitable for me to sell my book over Advantage? I don´t know, whether I have the "Northamerican right" to sell the book, since I live in Germany, but got my book printed in Sri Lanka (I grew up there and wrote about the time in Sri Lanka and my parents´ work there). I thought to sell it for 10 Euro per book (since it is "English broshure" and has coloured pictures (digital printing). Is it better for me to send the books directly from Sri Lanka to Amazon (whats the adresse of Amazon, into which country do I have to send the books?)or will it be better to bring the books to Germany and send them from here to Amazon.Or is it better not to use Advantage, but to send the books by myself. What would you suggest?

Sieglinde - Germany

26271

Answer

Although you can make some money selling through Amazon Advantage, it is not the best route to take. I imagine you have had a number of your books printed and available to sell. You can only send a limited number of books to Advantage. If they are sold, they will request more copies. However, that ends up costing money on shipping fees.

You might try taking copies to local bookstores to see if they would be interested in buying them or even selling on consignment.

Another route is to go through Amazon's CreateSpace- Germany. They will publish books for fee and sell them through Amazon's website. However, having colored pictures could be a problem.

You could also have your files converted to an e-book format through Kindle Direct Publishing- Germany. Colored pictures would be acceptable. They would also be listed on Amazon.

You can also check on Amazon's Germany website for these programs.

In either case, it would require some work to get things out there. You still could sell the books you have through other means.

I want to discontinue selling through Amazon Advantage

Topic: Amazon Advantage Program

Question

July 22, 2015

I want to discontinue sales of a book through Amazon Advantage. The book is out of print and I will not be printing more copies. I just received an order to a few copies of the book from Amazon. How do I reject or cancel a small order that I just received but can't fulfill how do I remove the book from Amazon's list?

Scott - USA

26186

Answer

It doesn't look easy to get out of the program. If you log into your account at Amazon Advantage, and click on Membership Agreement on the left menu, it states: "b. Termination by you. You may terminate this Agreement at any time, with or without cause, by giving us written notice of such termination. Your termination is effective 30 days from the date we receive your written notice. You must continue to accept, confirm, and fulfill all orders that we send to you prior to the effective date of termination."

That doesn't sound too friendly.

Also click on Help on the top menu and then click on Managing Your Account, you can find information about making adjustments.

I don't use the service anymore, because selling books on consignment isn't worthwhile.